The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday arrested a colonel posted with the Army Ordnance Corps, Eastern Command, in connection with a ₹50 lakh bribery case, agency officials said.
The officer was taken into custody in Kolkata under the Prevention of Corruption Act and is being brought to Delhi for further interrogation, officials said.
According to CBI’s first information report (FIR) filed on May 18, Colonel Himanshu Bali, who was posted at the Army Ordnance Corps in Kolkata’s Fort William, was accused of indulging in corrupt practices to favour a Kanpur-based private person and his firm in the award of tenders, approval of substandard samples and clearing of pending and inflated bills in lieu of bribes.
HT has reviewed a copy of the FIR.
A private person, Akshat Agrawal, and his firm, Eastern Global Limited (Kanpur) have also been booked by the federal agency.
“…Akshat Agrawal, together with his father Mayank Agrawal, residents of Kanpur, have been maintaining regular contact with Colonel Bali for obtaining undue favours for their companies through illegal means, in connivance with other unknown officials,” the FIR said.
The agency also said that multiple tenders had been awarded to their firms by Eastern Command, Kolkata, allegedly “in exchange of substantial bribes paid to Bali and other unknown officers”.
According to the CBI, Akshat Agrawal and Bali had been in regular contact regarding a tender awarded to the firm in March-April 2026.
“On April 22, both met personally outside official working hours at Park Street, Kolkata, to discuss matters related to this tender. Subsequently, on April 24, the tender was successfully awarded to Eastern Global Limited as a result of alleged undue favour by Colonel Bali.”
On May 16, “Bali contacted Akshat and reminded him about the bribe amount due as per prior commitment, directing that same be delivered in the Delhi-NCR region,” the FIR said.
The FIR said Akshat was making arrangements to send about ₹50 lakh through hawala channels to the army officer’s contact person in Delhi on Monday.
HT reached out to the army for a comment on the arrest. There has been no response yet.
